Article lift for containers



Jan. 16, 1968 J. DEARING ARTICLE LIFT FOR CONTAINERS Filed May 27, 1966 INVENTOR. JOSEPH 1.. QEAQ/A G,

United States Patent 3,363,794 ARTICLE LIFT FOR CONTAINERS Joseph L. Dearing, Hixson, Tenn., assignor of thirty-five percent to William P. Aiken, Chattanooga, Tenn. Filed May 27, 1966, Ser. No. 553,457 4 Claims. (Cl. 215100) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A vertical container having a slidable article-removing internal lift. The lift consists of a side wall and a bottom wall. The side edges of the side wall are integrallyconnected at their bottom ends to the periphery of the bottom wall. The bottom wall has a reduced peripheral upstanding wall extending continuously between the bottom ends of the side edges of the side wall. The lift is provided at its outer surface with spaced vertical suctionrelieving grooves and is formed with spaced drainage slots. The bottom wall also has a drainage aperture. The lift side wall is provided at its top edge with an internal rib serving as a handgrip.

This invention relates to an article lift for containers, adapted for installation preparatory to packing containers of relatively small diameter food articles, such as onions, cherries, pickles, and the like.

The primary object of the invention is the provision of an efficient, simple, inexpensive, and adequately rugged device of the character indicated, which embodies structural provisions for (a) relieving undesirable suction, otherwise present, when the device is elevated in a container to provide access to the contents thereof; (b) adequate drainage of fluid present in the container as the device is elevated; (c) prevention of lifted articles from falling back into the container as the device is elevated; and, (d) non-interference with the packing of articles in a container after the device has been inserted.

Another object of the invention is the pr vision of a sanitary and non-corrosive device of the character indicated above, which is adapted to be economically and efiiciently made, in one piece, from easily worked suitable materials, such as solid plastic or plastic coated materials.

In the drawings:

FIGURE 1 is an exploded perspective view, showing a container and its cap, and a lift for the container, in accordance with the present invention;

FIGURE 2 is a vertical transverse section, taken through the container and its lift;

FIGURE 3 is an enlarged fragmentary horizontal section, taken on the line 3-3 of FIGURE 2; and,

FIGURE 4 is a fragmentary vertical section, taken on the line 44 of FIGURE 3.

Referring in detail to the drawings, there is shown a container having a flat bottom wall 12, and a side wall 14 provided, around its upper end, with external screw threads 16, onto which a pan-shaped cover 18 is adapted to 'be screwed. The container 10 can be of any suitable material, but in any case, in accordance with the present invention, the container side wall 14 must be substantially straight, and the open upper end 20, of the container must be at least as large in diameter as the bottom wall of the container. The container 10 need not be cylindrical, as shown, but can be of any suitable cross section.

A lift 22 of the present invention, is shown installed in the cylindrical container 10, and in cases of containers of other cross sections, conforms closely to the inner surfaces of the sidewalls of the containers. The illustrated lift 22 comprises a circular flat bottom wall 24, of a diameter to fit closely and slidably with the inner surface of the container side wall 14, a cylindrical tubular side wall 26 rising from and preferably integral with the perimeter of the bottom wall 24. A centered drain slot 25 is provided in the bottom wall 24.

As shown in FIGLURES 1 and 2, the lift side wall 26 is cut away, at one side of the lift, so that, at the top of the lift, the side wall has an upper edge 28 which is semi-circular in extent, and, at the lower part of the side wall 26, a reduced height lower side wall portion 30 is provided, which has a horizontal upper edge 32, and which is an uninterrupted continuation of the side wall 26. The upper edge 32 has a length of about onethird of the circumference of the side wall 26. The cutting away of the lift side wall 26 is done in a manner to provide preferably straight upwardly angled side edges 34 leading upwardly from the ends of the upper edge 32 of the reduced wall portion 30, to the related ends of the upper edge 28, of the container side wall.

The reduced height side wall portion 30, together with the remainder of the lift side wall 26, provides, at the lower end of the lift 22, a receptacle of dimensioned depth, considering the size of the articles to be lifted, whereby, as the lift is elevated, in the container 10 an adequate quantity of articles will be lifted toward, and become accessible for removal, from the open upper end of the container. The lift 22 need not be removed from the container, but can be, if desired, as when the contents of the container are nearly exhausted.

In order to effectively eliminate unwanted suction, otherwise produced by elevation of the lift 22, in the container 10, the productive of resistance to elevation of the lift, the lift side wall 26, including the reduced height side wall portion 30, are formed with preferably equally circumferentially spaced, vertical external grooves 36, preferably of V-shaped cross section, which extend substantially the full height of the side wall.

In order to provide for and assure drainage back into the container 10, as the lift 22 is elevated, of any liquid present therein, in which the contained articles are packed, the main portion 38, of the lift side wall 26, is formed with vertically spaced, circumferentially staggered upper slots 40, spaced above the lower end thereof. In addition, similar lower drain slots 42 are provided around the main side Wall portion 38, and around the reduced height side wall portion 30 at the lower ends thereof. The slots 40 are preferably located between adjacent grooves 36, as are the lower slots 42. The slots 40' and 42 are preferably rectangular, slightly vertically elongated, and of a width to extend between and to adjacent grooves 36.

For the purpose of facilitating packing of the container 10, with the lift 22 in place therein, and eliminating any resistance or interference with the placing of articles into the lift equipped container, the lift side wall 26 is formed, at its upper end, with an internal annular head 44, which has a smooth fiat inner surface 46 which is upwardly and outwardly angled to the upper edge of the lift side wall. As shown in FIGURE 2, the head 44 projects inwardly from the surface of the side wall 26 and defines therewith a shallow shoulder 48, at the lower edge of the bead. As articles are introduced into the lift-equipped container 10, through its open upper end, the upper edge 28 of the lift being close to and slightly below the open upper end 20 of the container 10, with the bottom wall 24 of the lift resting upon the 'bottom wall 12, of the container, the declining surface 46 of the bead acts to cam the articles inwardly to fall freely into the container and into the lift. The shoulder 48 serves as a convenient finger-grip which facilitates manually elevating the lift 22 out of the container, and desirably mitigates against accidental dropping of the lift into the container.

What is claimed is:

1. In combination, a vertical container having an open upper end, a bottom wall, and a side wall, the open upper end of the container being at least as large in diameter as its bottom wall, a lift having a side wall and a bottom wall, the lower ends of the side edges of said side wall being supportingly rigidly-connected to the periphery of said bottom wall, the outside diameter of the lift side wall being only slightly less than the inside diameter of the container side wall, said lift being slidably inserted into the container with its bottom wall resting upon the bottom wall of the container, the side wall and the bottom wall of the lift being perforated, the exterior of the lift side wall being formed with vertical suction releasing grooves spaced therearound.

2. The combination of claim 1, wherein the lift side wall is cut away at one side thereof so as to define spaced upwardly extending edges, and a reduced height lower side wall portion integrally-connected with and extending between said upwardly-extending edges.

3. The combination of claim 1, wherein the lift side wall is cut away at one side thereof so as to define spaced upwardly-extending edges, and a reduced height lower side wall portion integrally-connected with and extending between said upwardly-extending edges, said lift side wall having an upper horizontal edge located close to and spaced downwardly from the upper end of the container, and an internal finger grip on the lift side wall at said upper horizontal edge.

4. The combination of claim 1, wherein the lift side wall is cut away at one side thereof so as to define spaced upwardly-extending edges, and a reduced height lower side wall portion integrally-connected with and extending between said upwardly-extending edges, said lift side wall having an upper horizontal edge located close to and spaced downwardly from the upper end of the container, and an internal finger grip on the lift side wall at said upper horizontal edge, said hand grip comprising an internal bead extending around the lift side wall and having a downwardly and inwardly-sloping inner surface, said head extending inwardly from the lift side wall and having a lower edge defining a shoulder with the lift side wall.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,318,842 1/1943 Eaton i 220-17 2,367,019 1/1945 Haag 20642 2,522,483 9/1950 Plack 22017 2,904,205 9/1959 Callery 215-100 RAPHAEL H. SCHWARTZ, Primary Examiner. 

